I for one am saddened at the state of George Best's health, it looks bleak right now for him. It makes me think of a song called "The Contender" on a CD by the Celtic Tenors - Irish Album. I can hardly bear to hear this song as it is so sad. It is about a superstar in the 30's called Jack Doyle from Cork. His only vice was alcohol, and in the end he died destitute and shoeless on the streets of London in 1978. Georgie has a private bed, but is no less tragic. My heart goes out to his family.

Hi Liz,

I can only concur with your concerns for George Best. He had everything a superstar could want, unfortunately he abused the "oul" drink. As a player, in my eyes anyway he had no equal. I remember the year Man.U. beat Benfica in the European Cup, and Geordie was at his brilliant best. However, at this time my thoughts and prayers are with him and his entire family.

Beano

It's too bad Geordie Best was born in N.I.
With his unbelievable talent, and, if he had been born in England, he would have been taken care off a lot better. It's terrible to see the best player ever to lace on a pair of boots for N.I. in his present condition. But, you can only reap what you sow, so now it is time for him to pay the piper.
God bless him.

Robbie,
I don't often take issue with contributions to the forum, but I find your remarks about George Best totally mystifying.
How would he have been better treated had he been born in England?
He went to ManU as a 14/15 year old and didn't set foot in NI, apart from brief visits home, from that time.
You say he is reaping what he sowed. That may be the case but we all do that- don't we?
Geoge Best is the finest athlete ever to grace a soccer pitch in Europe, probably the world.
No person deserves to suffer as he has. Whilst some of it may be self inflicted GB has never sought to hide his deficiencies nor has he asked for pity.
Perhaps if he had been better guided at Manu things may have been different.
I, personally, am proud that he is a Northern Irishman and I am pleased that I was able to see his talent on display on many grounds throughout the UK and thank him for the privilege of so doing.
May he find the peace and happiness, whatever happens,that we all seek and may his family find succour in the knowledge that George gave thousands, nay millions, of people like me, so much enjoyment.

LR

To evryone with a disparaging opinion of George Best... Look to your own doorstep before you criticise others...

Here Here Mr. Low Roader, couldn't agree more if I had written it myself.. As a lifelong Man Utd fan I hope that the Wee Belfast Boy makes it through this wee spot of bother and lives on. He has done so much for us all of the "Oul Sod" that we just can't thank him enough...

Get Well Geordie....

Well said Low Roader!!!!

I’ve had a bit of trouble posting. Hope it’s not because of that ‘security’ screen that Jim has stuck at the bottom!?

A lifetime ago, or so it seems,
On a cold North London ground,
I watched a game between two teams.
The stadium rocked with sound

In the cold winter air, the wind was raw
As one team was put to the test
By a player so rare, men whispered in awe:
“That’s him. That’s Georgie Best”.

In life, I’ve heard more than one man say,
George wasn’t always wise
But those lucky enough to see him play
Saw a genius before their eyes.

He drank, he fought, he was known to cry
But when matched against the rest
They will know that Georgie didn’t lie
When he said, “ I was the Best”.

Well George seems to have caused a bit of a stir on the forum.......!!!!!
I personally think he has been the best footballer ever...I have always been so proud to claim him as "one of our own". The problem I think has always been the timing of his career. He was an enigma. He was unique. He was the first superstar footballer. There was no-one to advise him or guide him. Everything was unprecedented. It was a whole new (excuse the pun)ballgame. If he was one of todays so-called super stars, things, I'm sure would have been different. There are supports in place today to prevent what happened to him.
Not that I am excusing him completely......he obviously must take some of the blame for decisions he made.......but generally I feel the timimg was wrong and he had no guidelines to follow because they hadn't been drawn yet.
Maureen

George's light is now dimming and may not be here tomorrow. So Godbless George and to all his family.
Sally xx

Hi Dabbler,

I have been a Man.U.fan since 1948 that was when John Carey,another brilliant Irishman was captain. I kept a scrapbook from then. Your latest prose will be a keeper to add to my collection. Thank you.

To Low Roader........ Well said.

Beano

Beano
I cannot claim to be a ManU fan. Arsenal was the team I was following in the sixties, (and ever since, though mostly on TV nowadays), when I was fortunate enough to see Georgie Boy, and many great players of that time.
But, like everyone from the oul place, I proudly proclaimed that he was from my neck o’ the woods.
He seems to have been a part of my life, and I feel like another wee bit of it has gone.